Former Nairobi governor Evans Kidero, former county secretary Lilian Ndegwa, and ex-chief finance officer Jimmy Kiamba have been acquitted of corruption charges linked to the alleged loss of Sh213,327,300 during Kidero’s tenure at City Hall.
While delivering the ruling, Senior Principal Magistrate Victor Wakhumile said the prosecution had failed to establish a prima facie case against the three in 17 counts, noting that testimony by State witnesses “favoured the accused more than it supported the prosecution’s case.”
“I hereby acquit all the persons charged in the 17 counts under Section 210 of the Criminal Procedure Code,” ruled Magistrate Wakhumile
The magistrate, however, directed the remaining accused persons to enter their defence, indicating that only part of the matter has been concluded.
Kidero and eight others had been accused of conspiring to fraudulently authorise payments that allegedly resulted in the loss of more than Sh 213 million in county funds.
The charges included conspiracy to commit corruption, dealing in suspect property, abuse of office and fraudulent acquisition of public resources. But the court found that the prosecution failed to link the former governor, Ndegwa and Kiamba to any corrupt scheme, pointing to investigative gaps and weak evidence.
During the trial, former finance chief Jimmy Kiamba maintained that all the questioned payments were properly authorised and processed within Nairobi County’s established financial systems.
Through his lawyer Philip Nyachoti, he argued that every disbursement underwent multi-layer approval and was supported by documentation including requisitions, payment vouchers and departmental endorsements.
He further told the court that no single officer, including himself, could authorise payments without verification from procurement, accounts and the county secretary’s office.
Kiamba added that audit trails and banking records produced in court aligned with Public Finance Management regulations, insisting that investigators had misunderstood routine financial processes and relied on witnesses who were “far removed” from the actual workflow, resulting in testimony that inadvertently supported the accused persons.
The accused persons in the case were former governor Evans Kidero, former county secretary Lilian Wanjiru Ndegwa, former chief finance officer Jimmy Mutuku Kiamba, former CEC in charge of Finance and Planning Gregory Mwakanogo, former acting chief finance officer Luke Mugo, former acting head of Treasury Maurice Ochieng Okere, former Nairobi head of Treasury Stephen Ogago Osiro, and businesspersons John Githua and Grace Njeri, directors of Lodwar Wholesalers Limited and Ngurumani Traders Limited, alongside the two companies.
While Kidero, Ndegwa and Kiamba were cleared, the court found that the State had established a case requiring Osiro, Githua and Njeri to enter their defence in counts 18 to 35.
“I find that counts 18 to 31 and 32 to 35, accused persons placed on their defence,” the magistrate ruled.
According to the charge sheet, Kidero was accused of receiving Sh14 million and later Sh10 million from Lodwar Wholesalers Ltd, allegedly knowing the funds were proceeds of corruption.
He was further alleged to have conspired to defraud Nairobi County between January 2014 and January 2016, leading to the alleged loss of Sh213 million for services the State claimed were never rendered.